Immigrants Now Unable to Help Their Families in Mexico
By: Gerri L. Elder
The economic crisis in the United States is really hitting home and affecting Americans across the country. According to the Bank of Mexico, tough times in the states have also meant tough times for many residents of Mexico. The Bank of Mexico reported that in January the amount of money sent from the U.S. to Mexico fell by $100 million as compared to January 2007.
Because prices are rising and the dollar is shrinking as Americans face an economic recession, many immigrants who live and work in the United States and routinely send money back to help their families in Mexico have been unable to send as much or any money at all lately.
Immigrants who have lived and worked in the U.S. for years and faithfully sent weekly payments back to their families in Mexico now find that since the costs of food and gas have dramatically increased and some businesses have been forced to cut hours or lay off workers just to make ends meet, it is now much more difficult to support themselves. Many have nothing left over to share with relatives in Mexico.
A recent report by CNN noted that money received by people in Mexico through the World Bank grew 20 percent annually between 2002 and 2006 but hit a wall in 2007 and grew by only 1.4 percent. Immigrants who work or have worked at construction jobs have been hit the hardest so far. The collapse of the housing market has put many construction workers out of jobs and has cut the hours and income of others. The immigrants who have had their income eliminated or dramatically slashed are unable to find new jobs in such a weak market and are struggling to support themselves, just as many Americans are.
A poll by the Inter-American Development Bank's Multilateral Investment Fund of 5,000 Latin Americans living in the United States shows that in 2006, 73 percent were regularly sending money to relatives. The same poll conducted in February indicated that only 50 percent were still able to regularly send money across the border.
For the people in Mexico who have depended on the money sent to them from the illegal immigrants who are working in the United States, the situation is dire. Some will have to do without basic medications and most will slide further into poverty. Some immigrants who have been living and working in the U.S. will be forced to return to Mexico to seek shelter and assistance from their already desperately poor families because there is no longer work for them in the United States. Others will try to tough it out in the U.S. and wait for the economy to improve - and hope that it does before they are forced to give up and return to Mexico.
Ironically enough, although many Mexican immigrants came to the United States seeking a better life for themselves and their families, some say they may now actually be better off back in Mexico.